Before I got pregnant, I really didn’t like my body. I thought I was fat, thought I wasn’t good enough, you know… things a lot of young girls and women deal with. I gained weight and got stretch marks, and that sent me into a deep dark place of self-loathing and despair that I wasn’t beautiful anymore.
And then I found out I was somehow the .01% and had conceived on the pill.
For the first few days I worried about my body. I worried about how I would look and how I would change. Would I hate my body more? Would it matter?
Days went by and I started liking my body. My body was the same body, but I saw it in a different light. I started feeling its power, the power of life. I was making a life! I mean, I AM making a life!
Now, my belly is growing bigger everyday, and at 19 weeks along, I’m still loving my body. I’m stretching and aching and expanding, but my heart and mind are, too. My idea of beauty is changing. Yes, I know I’ll never look the same, I know I’ll never have my smooth teen tummy back…and I’m okay with that.
I’ve searched the internet so many times looking for women whose self-esteem INCREASED during pregnancy, but I can’t find any! All I find is, “How to boost your self-esteem during pregnancy.” “‘I HATE MY PREGNANT BODY!'” “I love my kids, but hate how they’ve changed my body.”
I want women to know they don’t have to hate their pregnant bodies. I want women, and young girls especially, to realize our bodies change completely after a baby and it’s okay. We’re still beautiful. We’re still the same person we were before we conceived. The things in life that are most important are things we can’t see or touch, but things we feel… people we love.
I want women to see this one positive search result in a world full of negative search results.
I hope when I eventually choose to have a child, I too can have the same positive mindset as you, and love my body through all of its changes. You are an inspiration!
Thanks for writing this! I am 34 weeks, and I, too, am loving being pregnant! I think I look great!
I am currently 31 weeks with my first and I (mostly) love the changes! I was on the border between overweight and obese before pregnancy (having recently hit that border, I had been obese for years before). I was pretty happy with my body at that point and nervous about regaining weight, even though it was for a totally different reason.
But now I love my big belly, and I love that I can show it off and not feel guilty about it sticking out! It helps that my husband loves it, too. I had some infertility issues and feel so blessed that I was able to achieve pregnancy, and I hope I continue to love my body up the very end!
Great post! Thanks for sharing such a positive view 😀
I’m 20 weeks pregnant right now and I actually feel the exact same! I can’t wait until my belly is HUGE. I’ve always had this weird admiration for pregnant women/bellies and I’m so excited to be going through those changes now. I admire you for overcoming your low self-esteem and for writing this. You are beautiful. Hope everything goes well for you and your baby<3
It makes me so happy to read this article, I thought I was the only one! I absolutely lovee being pregnant. I’m currently 16 weeks pregnant and can’t wait for my belly to get bigger, pregnant women are beautiful!
I love my pregnant body too its nice to have 9 months not to care that ur belly’s hanging out now post partum body I’m not quite as in love with lol
I’m 28 weeks pregnant today and I am in shock how much I’m enjoying pregnancy. I’m actually slightly sad that I’ve entered my third trimester because that means pregnancy will be over so soon.
I’ve never felt more feminine or womanly in my life. Having battled self-esteem and body issues for years, I’m just continually surprised that I feel this way. I feel beautiful & confident and it’s so amazing to know I’m growing a little human inside me.
I am 37 weeks pregnant as of today, and I can TOTALLY relate! I had fluctuated between a size 12 and 16 since the 7th grade and always felt like my breasts were never big enough to match my frame, so I grew up with a lot of body image issues. I began to feel more comfortable in my skin and empowered about my body by my mid twenties (after years of agonizing) though clothing shopping was ALWAYS a living hell because nothing sold in stores ever fit me quite perfectly. Even after I got ahold of loving my curves while living a healthy lifestyle, there would always be a sliver of back fat or patch of jiggly under arm fat that would now and then send me reeling back into the insecure teenager of my past…. until I got pregnant!
I’m now 27, and expecting my first baby any day. My cycles were irregular and after many expensive tests, doctors decided we’d need fertility treatment if we ever wanted kids… miracle of miracles, within 3 months of that diagnosis we’d gotten pregnant without any chemical assistance! Needless to say, we were overjoyed that modern medicine was wrong in this case.
Even from my first trimester, I was psyched about how big my boobs had grown even before I felt like I was showing elsewhere. Once I did start to show, it was a different kind of belly fat than I’d always been self-conscious of before, and just knowing that there was a BABY, a LIFE, growing inside of that extra lump of belly made me love my new and constantly changing shape even more. Back fat, and arm jiggle, and new found hip expansion be damned, this is all part of the beautiful process of sustaining life and I for one have never felt more beautiful, womanly, or sexy than I do right now while pregnant:)
I could have written this comment myself! I’m 23 and have always been heavy… about a size 16 before I got pregnant but WITHOUT the size 16 chest. I was told years ago that I was probably not going to have children without help, so we just didn’t think too much about it once we decided we were okay with the very unlikely chance I would get pregnant. Surprise! I’m only 18 weeks, but it’s like for the first time in my life its OKAY to have a belly (although mine hasn’t expanded much, just rounded) and it rocks. I’m not afraid to wear the girly (aka non t-shirt and jeans) clothes I’ve always avoided or to lift my shirt for my family to check out the tummy line. I used to turn all shy and hide under the covers for sex… now I’m letting it all flop all over the place and I’ve never felt more… powerful, I guess, and attractive.
Probably doesn’t hurt that I’ve had a ridiculously easy pregnancy so far, but I’m loving it.
I loved being pregnant and definitely loved my body more than I had before getting pregnant. I loved having a belly and I look forward to being pregnant again!
Thanks for this post. I’m 11 weeks I still look the same. While I’m looking forward to gaining my baby belly, I’ve also been worried about how it will affect my self esteem. I hope that when I start showing I feel as good about myself as I do now.
I am so happy to see this! I felt the exact same way. I’ve been full figured my whole life and the thought of getting pregnant filled me with fear of becoming so huge and disliking my body even more. When I did become pregnant I was so afraid at first, then all of a sudden things started to change. Like you I saw myself in a whole other light. Over time I felt beautiful and sexy. My husband constantly told me “you look gorgeous, being pregnant suits you for sure” and I really felt that. I felt the best I have my whole life, healthy, happy and I knew my baby was growing up strong inside of me. Now that I have my precious little one (6 mo), my body is back to what is used to be, but I really miss being pregnant.
Yes!!! I’m 37 weeks and after a lifetime of poor body image and struggles to maintain a healthy weight, I’m proud to be happy with how I look. Having a baby belly has been massively liberating, and to some degree, I really look forward to knowing (after the fact) that whatever shape I end up is in part due to the fact that I have had a child. Thanks for putting this sentiment out there!
Check out http://www.theshapeofamother.com!
I dislike shape of another for the simple fact that most of the posts are not positive, a lot of them seem to be about hating their bodies and feeling helpless to change it. There is also way too much conflict and negativity in the comments. I feel the original intention of the site is lost between those two things.
I agree, when I heard about that site I thought it would just be user submitted photos of pregnant/postpartum bodies, but it just seems like tons of women writing about how miserable they are. Really a bummer. I think it could’ve been a great thing.
Yeah, though some women do legit struggle with body image issues postpartum and it might be relieving for them to talk about it. I consider that a great thing.
Im not pregnant, I had my daughter 4 months ago.
But in the same sence, I feel so much better, and much better about myself and body now post pregnancy!
Now I’m not one of those women that looked like the poster pregnant lady, I had/have major stretch marks, my tummy tattoos are pretty destroyed, and I had an emergency c section so I have that annoying pooch and scar, but damn, I don’t know why but I feel confidant and sexy now! I felt nothing like this before, I think it may be because I have found who I am, a mama!
I felt the same thing!! I’ve been overweight and very critical of my body my whole adult life. But I felt sooooo beautiful during my pregnancy! I’ve never been more confident and in love with my body.
Now that I’m a nursing mother, I’m trying to hold on to that incredible connection to my body.
Before I got pregnant, I suffered from bulimia for nearly 6 years. In fact, I thought I had done too much damage to my body to be able to conceive. But I found out I was pregnant this past August, and it seemed like own body was giving me an ultimatum. If I chose to keep binging and purging, I’d kill my baby. So in order to keep my baby healthy, I had to learn to love and respect my body too. I still have days when I don’t feel self-confident, but they are few and far between. And I know my body will never be the same, even if I do lose weight. I love you’re post. Woman need to realize that it’s okay to feel self-conscience some days, but a pregnant body is beautiful, and honestly, sexy. We need to start loving ourselves.
I’ve had body issues all my life as well and when I was pregnant all those body image issues went away. I wore a bikini out in public for the first time in my life while pregnant and I was very ok with it. There was a reason my body looked the way it did and I was never happier with how I looked.
Now I am pregnant with my second baby. The beginning was a bit bumpy as I agonized about my weight gain (it took about 1.5 years to get the last pregnancy weight off). But finally I decided that I needed to stop looking at the scale and enjoy my pregnancy for what it is. We only plan to have two kids so this will be the last time that I am pregnant so I want to treasure every moment that I can about the whole experience… including the changes to my body. I will eat healthy for both me and baby. And I will gain what I gain, and I will worry about taking it off after the baby is born. 🙂
I’m 18 weeks and loving my belly that is getting bigger every day. I love being pregnant! have always been a really fit, lean person, and was worried about if I would have any issues with gaining weight and what not…..but thankfully seem to be doing great. Pregnant bodies are beautiful!
SO gorgeous. Just a lovely post. Congratulations on being pregnant (slightly jealous here!)!!
When women don’t feel this way I want to cry and shout “You are DOING something with your BODY that is AMAZING. It’s going to change but LOOK what it MADE!!!”
This really reached me today.
I couldn’t agree with you more! I totally found a new appreciation and *gasp* love for my body during and after pregnancy. After giving birth naturally, without pain meds and hving a preterm baby at 24.5 weeks prego, you’d think i’d hate my body all over again but I don’t. I love that I’m able to provide milk for a baby who really needs it. I have found I feel more powerful, sexy and feminine in a way I never knew I could. Post-partum libido dips did not occur for me even despite spending all our spare time in the nicu. Yes, I havemore of a pot belly but now I look at it with pride of the life it once grew and nourished. My larger breasts give life and their milk help protect a fragile life. Women are amazing and beautiful no matter what. I wish we knew this earlier in life. We are all warrior goddesses!
I couldn’t agree with you more! I totally found a new appreciation and *gasp* love for my body during and after pregnancy. After giving birth naturally, without pain meds and hving a preterm baby at 24.5 weeks prego, you’d think i’d hate my body all over again but I don’t. I love that I’m able to provide milk for a baby who really needs it. I have found I feel more powerful, sexy and feminine in a way I never knew I could. Post-partum libido dips did not occur for even despite spending all our spare time in the nicu. Women are amazing
LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!! Though feeling sick and tired isn’t my fave thing, the movement of my baby and my growing bosom and belly are so awesome! I want to wear tight shirts and show up the momma curves I am feel lucky to have. While I am still pregnant and don’t know how this will go once the baby is born, I expect feeling inspired to be healthy and more in touch with my body than ever before is the path I am on. I appreciate this experience so much and completely agree with you; this is the beginning of a life no only with this incredible little person who living image of mine and my husband love for each other, but my own personal love for the body I am blessed with and what it can do.
I am 17 weeks right now, and for a few weeks I’ve been saying that my belly just looks chubby. I’m not a small person, size 12 ish, but I have felt healthy and happy for the past few years after having many ups and downs with my weight. Just yesterday I started lamenting that I now have love handles, but after seeing this, it’s a good reminder for me to embrace all these changes and realize that there is a much bigger purpose here. I look forward to sporting a bikini when I go to Maui in March with my 6 month belly, probably more confident in a bathing suit than I’ve ever been.
I had the same experience! Pregnancy made me feel strong and beautiful for the first time in my life. My daughter is now four months old and I still love my body, stretch marks and all.
Thank you for this comment! This is my fear – not the pregnancy but the postpartum body. Actually I think we get TONS of positive imagery about pregnant bellies (which celebrity is sporting a “bump”? how to make a belly cast! belly painting/henna! maternity photo sessions!). But all we hear about after the baby comes is how to lose the weight as fast as possible to fit into our old jeans size. Maybe someday a photo feature celebrating the postpartum belly?
It is sad there’s nothing out there about positive body image when pregnant. I’m lucky to have what seems to be (sadly) an unusually positive body image, and while I don’t know if I pregnancy made me feel any better, but it certainly didn’t bother me. My husband, by the way, loved my pregnant bod, although not in any kind of fetishistic way, I might add!
Fortunately, my waist has always been about the least good part of my body, so my tummy after two kids is not much of a cross to bear, though I will be working on it soon (now my son is 5 months old) if for no other reason that it’s quite difficult finding clothes that fit properly.